I love my convertible, but I have to say that I'm really sorry this didn't happen

 

http://automotoscope.com/2010/11/18/ebay-find-of-the-day-1991-nissan-300zx-spyder-concept/

Seen this a couple of times now but not the extra pics....but yes it is a shame it was not put in to full production!!

This was posted before - I think I was one of the only people that liked it LOL! :huh:

I like it. Nice interior too.

It's even got its own facebook page http://www.facebook.com/posted.php?id=300729326454

How cool is that?

b*gger can't get the YouTube link to work. Here it is directly

Great car, great colour.

Edited May 1, 201114 yr by Gio

Very nice motor. Looks good with the roof both up and down, and thats rare in my humble opinion.

Very nice motor. Looks good with the roof both up and down, and thats rare in my humble opinion.

 

Agreed - really cool.

 

Thanks to Gio for pointing me at these additional pics

It is an awesome fully convertible zed and would love one if they had of went into production and that roof set up reminds me of my wifes Micra CC:biggrin:

Very nice looking car, love the colour too.

Just for a bit of balance..

 

Its awful - its a complete abomination of the car's lines - the reason there is 30 pictures and not one clear photo from the side with the roof up, is because it looks gash. Its hideous. In testing small children would cry and parents would shield their eyes. Dogs would vomit as it drove past and birds would fall from the sky, convulsing.

 

The reason it never went into production is because it looked terrible (not with the roof down so much) and it was as heavy as a ship's anchor. In performance tests it managed a top speed of 37.5 mph. To perform the publicity shots they had to tow it behind a skoda then cut the tow chain just before they took the snaps.

 

Satan put a deposit down for one - THATS HOW BAD IT WAS :devil:

 

Nuff said.

Just for a bit of balance..

 

Its awful - its a complete abomination of the car's lines - the reason there is 30 pictures and not one clear photo from the side with the roof up, is because it looks gash. Its hideous. In testing small children would cry and parents would shield their eyes. Dogs would vomit as it drove past and birds would fall from the sky, convulsing.

 

The reason it never went into production is because it looked terrible (not with the roof down so much) and it was as heavy as a ship's anchor. In performance tests it managed a top speed of 37.5 mph. To perform the publicity shots they had to tow it behind a skoda then cut the tow chain just before they took the snaps.Satan put a deposit down for one - THATS HOW BAD IT WAS :devil:

 

Nuff said.

 

I think even a one off convertible n/a can manage that speed lol, it is each there own off course but in all honesty i thought it held the lines (reasonably) well for a convertible

the reason there is 30 pictures and not one clear photo from the side with the roof up

really?

 

 

The reason it never went into production is ...

It cost $820,000 to develop and later when the same company did it with the GTO3000, they sold less than 2,000 http://www.3000gtspyder.com/

 

An informative thread on the car try here http://www.aus300zx.com/forum/showthread.php?t=302057

 

Here's another ASC triumph

 

I found one ref (but not confirmed yet) that says ASC also did all the 300ZX convertibles...

Edited May 1, 201114 yr by Gio

And there's more:

ASC History including

 

Another thread http://www.aspeedracing.com/showthread.php?t=11923

The American Sunroof Corporation, or ASC, has been building convertibles for OEM applications for years, and when the new 300ZX came out, they knew it would only be a matter of time before Nissan would want to market a drop-top version. Introduced at the Geneva Auto Show on March 3, 1992, this Nissan 300ZX convertible with a retractable hardtop was built to highlight the ASC articulating hardtop technology in a fully functional sports vehicle. The challenge in building this vehicle came in retaining the full-width rear seat, which they managed to do, giving this car room for 4. The car features an all-metal folding hardtop that retracts and folds into the rear storage area with the touch of a single button.

 

The key words with this important car are "all-steel" and "OEM". ASC built this car as a proposal to Nissan for a convertible 300ZX, and as such, it is built to original equipment manufacturer (OEM) standards. This is not a one-off custom by some chop shop; this is a 100% production-ready prototype built by the company that builds convertibles for some of the world's largest automakers. Because of this, every single part has been designed and built with OEM tolerances and finishes, with reliability and functionality on par with anything you would buy at a new car dealer. There are no cobbled-together bits from other convertibles on this Z; this is a fully-engineered hardtop convertible (the first since the Ford Retractable in 1959!) with full weather seals, finished upholstery, and no compromises. The rear window defroster works, the rear quarter windows are power actuated, and the rear seats are completely usable.

and

The car itself is a stock 4-seater 1991 300ZX with a naturally aspirated 3.0 liter V6 making 222 horsepower and tied to a 5-speed manual transmission.

So whatever happened to the ASC retractable hardtop program? I know I promised you the rest of the story, and it doesn't end with this car. Although Nissan passed on this project and ultimately went on to produce a cloth-topped 2-seat 300ZX convertible, the idea of a retractable hardtop was immensely appealing to another high-tech Japanese automaker who was bringing an equally potent performance car to the market. That company is Mitsubishi, and the car became the 3000GT Spyder.

If you look round at all the hard-top convertibles that are now on the market, maybe the ASC 300ZX can be criticised for a) being ahead of its time and b) not in my garage.

 

Oh, and as for the colour which looks insanely wonderful in the US sunshine

For the show, the car was painted in a custom color called Mayorka Green Pearl, which is sophisticated and very light-dependent. Under some conditions, it looks almost blue, but in bright sunlight, it's a lovely turquoise.

 

The series of pics in the aspeedracing thread show just how good it can look (and include yet another side on shot with the roof up):

Nice car or spawn of the devil?

Edited May 1, 201114 yr by Gio

This is going to be blasted to hell, but opinions are like bum holes.........

 

I think that looks as good as a standard LWB - I think the bulked up back end balances the length out, especially in the set of 3 pics Gio posted (the one where it looks more green).

 

And I reckon it looks much better than the ragtop. Without intending to offend anyone, I think they look hideous with the roof up (as most ragtops do).

 

It's all about achieving a balance between form and function, and I reckon that is as spot on as it could be.

I'm glad to see that my comments were taken 100% seriously, just as I intended.

 

Strange how no-one questioned the birds falling from the sky bit :tt2:

 

If they had reduced the rake angle of the rear glass and had the rear deck lid sloping down towards the rear a little, I think it could have worked. But it didn't and it doesn't.

 

And all the cheese in china won't change that.. :winkiss: